A recent study by Vinexpo was conducted that surveyed 100 occasional wine drinkers aged 20-25 (20 each in London, Paris, Brussels, New York and Tokyo). In focus groups, the study participants were found to all be interested in wine, but deterred by it's complexity and stuffy image. Another survey by decanter.com concluded that 18-25 year olds were interested in wine and eager to learn more. 



That is honestly, one of the main reasons I started this site. As a younger wine enthusiast myself, I can at times find it very difficult to be taken seriously by those in the wine field. I would love to hear what the rest of you think. Have you had trouble because of your age when it comes to wine?

The San Jose Mercury News featured an article yesterday about the website crushpadwine.com. Crushpad is a unique business venture that allows anyone to be a virtual winemaker. 



Crushpad walks virtual winemakers through a six step process. The customer starts by designing the wine, anywhere from a basic description to a detailed specification, and then a plan is set up for what wines and methods will produce that design. Throughout the growing process the customer can monitor the their grapes' progress online, and a vineyard tour to visit their vines can even be scheduled. Once the grapes are ready they are taken to Crushpad to be processed, and then aged in barrels. The final step is to design your wine's packaging (including everything from the label to the cork). 



At the end of the process, the customer receives about 25 cases of wine from their barrel, and Crushpad takes care of all the legalities so there's no need to worry about taxes or paperwork. They even offer a service for those that are interested in selling their wines commercially. 



While the service is certainly not cheap (prices range between $4500 to $10,000 a barrel), it is definitely one of a kind. Who wouldn't want to try their hand at producing their own wine if given the chance? I would absolutely love to myself, just a hint to anyone looking to buy me a present....wink, wink. 



So if you have the inclination, take a look at their site www.crushpadwine.com.

The Portland Business Journal conducted a survey last week of their readers to see how they felt about wines with and without corks.



The Journal asked "Is a cork an essential part of the fine wine experience?" Here are the results:



• 50% responded with "Who cares how the bottle's closed as long as the wine is good."
• 26% said "Without a cork it's just not the same."
• 12% said "I've got better things to worry about."
• 10% said "Screw caps are okay for cheap stuff, but I want a cork with the good stuff."



Interesting results. Personally, I think the cork ads to the experience. And I love to collect the corks from wines I've tried. What do you think?

California Cooler, the originator of the wine cooler in the 1980's, is now offering a new product that claims to be the only brand to use real wine to make their coolers.

CEO Jason Kane explains "Most companies switched to malt during the '90s because of taxation and state-to-state shipping restrictions. The new California Cooler will be the only nationally available brand to use real wine and juice as well as infused natural fruit flavors."

The new flavors will include Coastal Citrus, Pomegranate Berry, Cranberry Grapefruit, and White Peach. The coolers should be rolling out by May 2007, and retail for around $7.99.

A dairy in Boonville, New York, Mercer's Ice Cream, has created ice cream in three different wine favors: Ala Port Wine, Peachy White Zinfandel, and Red Raspberry Chardonnay. The dairy came up with the idea several years ago when Mercer's was exhibiting at the Pride of New York product fairs alongside area wineries.


But be prepared to show your ID for this concoction. The ice cream has an alcohol content of 5%, and can't be served to minors.

Taste of the Springs 2007 is coming up in May and offers two chances for great food and wine. 



On May 5 at 6:30pm, the Craftwood Inn is hosting the Winemaker's Dinner, featuring wines from Michael and David Vineyards.
Then, on May 6 from 3pm-6pm, the Sheraton Hotel will host the Taste of the Springs, featuring 30 of the finest restaurants in the area. This event also features a silent auction and a "Wheel of Good Taste."

This is one of the biggest food and wine events in the Colorado Springs area, and definitely should not be missed. You can check out all of the details at the website here.

Winemaker's Dinner
May 5th @ 6:30pm
The Craftwood Inn
$85 per person ($45 of which are tax deductible)
Menu and wine list here

Taste of the Springs
May 6th from 3pm-6pm
Sheraton Hotel
$65 per person ($45 of which is tax deductible)

I just came across a great site that I thought I'd share with you all. 

www.graperadio.com 

Grape Radio puts together several podcasts a week, and has a great site featuring wine knowledge and news. Check it out!

The San Francisco Gate featured on article today highlighting the newfound popularity of the Spanish wine Albarino. Grown predominantly in the Rias Baixas region of spain, the article states that the grapes

"make neat, distinctive wines that smell and taste like a remix of other, more popular grapes. It has some of the citrussy, grassy flavors of Sauvignon Blanc, flashes of richer peach and pineapple flavors of Viognier, and the delicate, minerally character of Riesling. In Portugal, Albarino makes Vinho Verde, a refreshing, low-alcohol, sometimes fizzy wine. The Spanish versions tend to be riper, richer and more complex, but still tart and refreshing."

Albarino accounts for 94% of the grapes planted in the Rias Baixas region, and because rain is common in the area, vines are usually grown up tall vertical posts to trellises that suspend the grapes over the wet ground. This positioning also allows drying breezes to flow through the vineyards after rain. Some small vineyards will even plant another crop underneath the canopy of vines.

Personally, I had never heard of this wine before reading the San Francisco Gate Article. But I feel the need to try it after reading the description.

Read the whole article here.

I know it's short notice, but I thought this was a big enough event to post, just in case anyone is in the area. 



The Grand Tasting at the Cincinnati International Wine Festival will feature more than 130 wineries, pouring nearly 600 vintages. The festival will take place at the Duke Energy Convention Center in downtown Cincinnati, and live music and food will accompany the many wines. 



6:30pm-9pm 

March 23rd and 24th 

www.winefestival.com

Next week Coaltrain Wine is hosting a tasting featuring "Wines to Drink with Spicy Foods" at Mackenzie's Chophouse. The Chef will be preparing Mexican, Thai, Chinese, and other spicy foods to pair with wine. There sill be a series of food samplings to compare and match. The price is $40 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Call 719-475-9700 to secure a reservation. 



This should be a fun event with great food and wine. 



March 28th @ 6pm 

Mackenzie's Chophouse 



Coaltrain Wine & Spirits 

330 W. Uintah 

Colorado Springs, CO 80905 

719-475-9700

Passport to Sonoma is a huge wine event scheduled for May 19th and 20th from 11am - 4pm at over 40 participating wineries in the Sonoma Valley, which will be presenting over 200 exceptional wines. Events at the wineries will include food pairing, live music, tours, wine education, and more. Ticket holders will receive a commemorative wine glass, unlimited wine tasting at over 40 wineries, preferred access to pre-release, library and winery-only wines, special pricing on select wines, and discounts and/or waived corkage on Sonoma Valley wines at participating restaurants.

Advanced tickets prices are $50 for the weekend, or $45 a day. And $10 tickets are available for designated drivers. At the event tickets will be $60 for the weekend, or $55 a day. To purchase tickets click www.sonomavalleywine.com.

Julia Flyn Siler, a regular contributer to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, will release a book on June 21st that chronicles the rise and fall of one of the greatest families in the wine industry. The House of Mondavi spans four generations and five continents from 1906 to 2005. Flynn Siler has been working on the book for three years, and has conducted over 525 hours of interviews with more than 250 people. The Mondavi family themselves agreed to be interviewed in order to make sure that their perspective was included.

The book will most likely be very controversial, and no advance or review copies were made available because of that fact. It should, however, prove to be a very interesting and informative read.

The Manitou Springs Wine Festival will be on June 2nd from 12pm to 6pm at Soda Springs Park. More than 20 Colorado wineries will be pouring samples, and there will be live entertainment throughout the afternoon. Food, fine art, and craft booths will be located throughout the park as well.

Tickets can be purchased at the event.

June 2nd, 2007 
12:00 PM - 6:00 PM 
Soda Springs Park 
Manitou Springs, Colorado 
$20.00 per person - includes a wine glass and tastings from all of the wineries. 
Wine can also be purchased by the bottle or case. 


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The Winery at Holy Cross Abbey

Reserve Tastings & Food Pairings
• Colorado Merlot Reserve, with guest chef James Tracey: March 22 4-7pm.
• 2006 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc, with hors d'ouevres by Han Son: March 29 4-7pm.
The events are free and located at the winery. Click here for directions.

Harvest Fest
September 29th and 30th, 2007
Harvest Fest features a host of wine events. Including tastings, tours, a wine dinner, and a community grape crushing! There isn't a lot of information yet, but you can find a brochure here.

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Power Liquor Mart Events
• California Wine Tasting, March 24th
• Microbrew Tasting, March 29th
• Wines of the World Tasting, March 31st

Pre-registration is required for these events, call 719-596-4700 for more info.

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The Blue Star Events
Wine tastings on Wednesdays at 6:30pm, $20.
• Wines with Chocolate, March 21st
• Spanish Wines, March 28th

Visit www.thebluestar.net for more info.

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Experience Wine Classes
Experience Wine Classes are held at Mimi's Café, located at 7133 N. Academy Blvd, and offer Sunday wine tastings.
• Simply Reds, March 28th 5:30-8pm $45
• Australian Wines, March 29th, 5:30-8pm $45
• A Friendly Introduction to Wine, April 15th 5:30-7:30pm $40
• Colorado Wines, April 26th 5:30-8pm $45

Visit www.experiencewine.net.

The Wine Makers is a new reality show that will air on PBS. It's supposed to be in the style of Bravo's Top Chef or NBC's The Apprentice. Twelve contestants, chosen from a pool of over 600 mean and women, are plunged into the wine making experience. And one will be chosen to create and launch their own wine label. The show began shooting in October of 2006, and is set to begin airing on PBS in fall of 2007. 

Now I know that there are many people out there that simply despise reality television, but unfortunately I have to admit that I am a true reality tv addict. There are very few reality shows that I don't have set to record on my Tivo. I think this show sounds absolutely fantastic, and I can't wait for it to start airing. I'll let you all know exact dates once I find them out.

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Uncorked: Wine Made Simple is a 6-part miniseries hosted by Ted Allen that is set to air in April of 2007. Each episode will introduce viewers to winemakers, wine terminology, and a host of wine basics including how to read a wine label and how to pair wine and food. The show is supposed to appeal to both novices and pros, through it's use of entertainment and interviews to teach. 

I love Ted Allen's on-screen presence and he has a vast knowledge of wine and food (watch his appearances on Top Chef). I think this should be quite an interesting show. Once again, I'll post the exact airtimes once I find them out. 







Wine researchers have apparently grown a dress from the bacterial skin that forms on top of red wine that has gone bad. The dress is a cotton-like cellulose creation that fits like a second skin according to Gary Cass, a researcher at the University of Western Australia. The team's goal was to create a garment that formed itself without even a single stitch. Cass describes the material as a "non-hazardous, non-pathogenic bacterium, five microns in size [that produces this material] which is more like tissue paper than cotton. 

Read the full story here.

The Expo today had to be one of the most heavily attended wine and food events I've been to in the Colorado Springs area. It had been promoted on the local radio station KKPK though, so I'm sure that had some effect on the attendance. While I love to see more people get out and experience local food and wine, there were a few too many people at the event for my standards. I don't like having to push through crowds in order to simply throw away a plate. 


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There were a great number of restaurants represented, and of a very large variety: mexican, greek, american west, fusion, italian, and many more. Here are my thought on some of the restaurants I tried out.

• Fuse - New American Cuisine
3317 Cinema Point
Colorado Springs, CO 80922
www.fuseamericanrestaurant.com

This restaurant's booth had two dishes, a greek style salad and a pita chip with a vegetable hummus. Typically I'm not much of a fan of this type of food, it usually seems a bit too new age for me. However the sample food was intriguingly refreshing. It was light and enjoyable, and the rest of their menu looks interesting as well. It features things like chipotle pasta, flatbread pizzetas, and a great drink list of martinis, margaritas, and wines.

• Salsa Brava
9420 Briar Village Point
& 802 Village Center Drive
http://www.restauranteur.com/salsabravaonlinecom/

I've actually eaten at this restaurant several times before, and they really do have excellent food. The sampling at the expo was of a seafood salsa. It was very good, though it had a bit much cilantro for me. They also have a great happy hour with fantastic margaritas.

• Jake & Telly's Greek Cuisine
2616 W. Colorado Ave.
http://www.greekdining.com/

Jake & Telly's offering was a stew flavored with some uncommon spices, such as cinnamon. I was a little leery at first, but it really did have a wonderful flavor. I've eaten at this restaurant several times before, and I actually know the family that owns it, I went to high school with Jake & Telly's younger brother. For Greek cuisine in the area, I highly recommend it.

• The Place
13990 Gleneagle Dr.
http://www.meetattheplace.com/

The Place is a fairly new restaurant that is located in the old building that used to be the Cactus Rose in Gleneagle. Their food samplings were meatballs and a shrimp salsa wrap. Both were excellent. I've never eaten there before, but I have heard good things about it, and it seems to be fairly popular with people in the area.

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As for wines, there weren't as many available for tasting as I thought there would be, but there were a few that I would recommend to you.

• Menage a Trois Rosé


As you have probably guessed rosé wines tend to be my favorite, and I think this one is a real winner. It's sweet and crisp, but not too sweet. An excellent wine to choose when you don't know what to pair with your meal.

• 337 Cabernet Sauvignon

This is perhaps the smoothest cabernet sauvignon I've ever tasted. While it has much of the body typical of a red wine, it's still somewhat light and fruity. If you have a hard time drinking red wines, give this one a try.

• Irony Wine Merlot

I had never tasted this wine before, but I definitely think I'll be buying some in the near future. The aroma was truly intoxicating, with a strong scent of cherries. The taste was just as fruity as the aroma, and made for a truly bold merlot.

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Finally, here are some of the pictures I took of the expo:

I found this blog entry to be very interesting and helpful. Take a look before your next large wine tasting. Maybe it will help you out. 



It's the spitting that is hard for me to get the hang of. I just can't understand why you'd want to spit out such wonderful wine. 
Personally, I think that having a water bottle with you is the most important thing. Especially if you're not spitting the wine.

I just found out about this event and wanted to share it with you all. The 11th Annual Restaurant Expo & Culinary Arts Show will be on March 18th at the Broadmoor Hotel. Over 40 of Southern Colorado's best restaurants and caterers will be there, with over 100 wines to sample as well. 
Plus, Colorado's best chefs will compete in an Iron Chef style competition. Should be lots of fun. Here are all of the details: 



Date: March 18, 2007 

Location: Colorado Hall at the Broadmoor Hotel 

Time: 12pm-3pm 

Tickets are $37.50 and can be purchased here 

All proceeds benefit the Memorial Hospital Foundation and Pro Start Colorado.

The International Wine Guild is hosting a Guild Certification class down in Colorado Springs! It will be in June at Plate World Cuisine in Briargate. The cost is $485, and includes all materials, wines, and guild membership. 



You can register here. Hope to see you all there!

The Grand Tasting for the Wine Festival was on Friday night, and it was spectacular. It was held at the Broadmoor Hotel and featured a wide assortment of wines and food. I have to admit that I've never been to this particular event before, so I don't have any previous years to compare it to. But as a first-timer, I truly enjoyed myself. 



I have to say that my favorite wine was the Peter Mertes Riesling. It was very sweet and crisp, an excellent German wine. It appears to be slightly difficult to purchase though, so I'll be sure to let you know when I find a store that sells it. I also enjoyed the Spruce Mountain Meadery's selection. I had never tried mead before, so it was a pleasant surprise. I recommend giving it a try if you haven't before, very sweet. 



For food the Ranch Steak House truly rose to the occasion. Their roast beef was excellent, and did well to help pad my stomach amongst all of those wines. The Melting Pot was also there with a wonderful assortment of fondue dippers and tiny cups of chocolate. Placing a $10 gift card on everyone's plate will definitely get some more people into their restaurant for a while I'm sure. 



The silent auction seemed to go very well, and hopefully raised lots of money for the CS Fine Arts Center. Though I truly wanted to contribute and purchase the Dale Chihuly print, it was sadly out of my budget. I highly encourage you to come to next year's event, you definitely won't regret it.

This looks like a fun event, and for a good cause too. All proceeds benefit the Colorado Children's Fund. Get your tickets here.

Date: Sunday, April 22, 2007 

Time: 5 to 8 pm 

Location: Warwick Denver Hotel, 15th Floor - Millennium Ballroom 

Ticket Price: $45 advance purchase: $50 at the door

Ernest Gallo died this afternoon at the age of 97. He was surrounded by family, and passed peacefully. 



Julio and Ernest Gallo started the E&J Gallo Winery in 1933 with less than $6000 and a wine recipe from a public library. They turned their business into one of the largest winemakers in the world. Ernest was listed on the Forbes magazine list of the richest Americans, with a family worth of $1.3 billion. His brother Julio, died in 1993. 



Ernest's brother Joseph, who broke from the family to go into the cheese business, passed away only a few weeks ago as well. 



The wine world will greatly miss this man who was both a visionary and tenacious businessman.